Integrity
by chocolate splash
Summary: Naruko has the perfect affinity with chakra. See how this helps and hinders her through her life; for she remains a caring, passionate, independent and uninfluenced individual despite all the hardships and comforts people direct towards her.
1. Chapter 1

**HI!**

 **This is my first fanfiction for Naruto. I am a new fan of this anime/manga, having come across it only 4 months back. Since then I have read a lot of fanfictions and have finally decided to attempt one myself.**

 **The idea behind this is having a fem!Naruto (Naruko) who is an Uzumaki, but not the daughter of Minato and Kushina, and neither is she a time traveller. She will be around the age of Itachi, and few years younger than Kakashi. The pairing... I have decided, but you will have to wait and see.**

 **Now, this will not follow the canon, so you will have to wait and see how this story proceeds. Some ages will be altered and many events too, so please don't blame me for not doing something exactly like it happened in the original.**

 **psss... I don't like having too many author notes, so this will be my only big one. I will give a hint of what's coming up in my next chapter though.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I do not wish to either, for I would never had come with such a tremendous plot on my own. All I can do is borrow the ideas and twist them to my own pleasure.**

* * *

Though it did not show, he was instantly on alert the moment he came into awareness. And yet he kept his eyes closed and breathing calm. The smell around was 'home-like'. There were two other voices coming from another room, a male and a female. But his senses told him there were three people in total. He was on a comfy futon, and his pains were all but gone.

His brows furrowed as he remembered his last memories. He was on a mission along with two other jounin to free the captives of the third shinobi war from Kirigakure. That went successfully, but they were attacked on the way by bandits, and he was heavily injured in protecting the weak. So he had ordered the jounin to leave with them and, faced the bandits himself and won.

 _But then what? And how come I do not feel any pain now? What I unconscious for so long time? Whose capture am I in now?_

He subtly tried to feel his movements as his mind whirled through the past for any memories. He stilled immediately when he heard a child's voice.

"Ka-chan, jiji is awake now."

He sensed someone approaching him and a female voice spoke soon.

"I know you are awake, sir. We are not enemies, Sannin Jiraiya. Please don't feel threatened."

Jiraiya opened his eyes. There was a simple family of three standing at the door. The father looked to be in his thirties, was blond and blue-eyed, well built and had a big smile on his face. The mother was younger, maybe in her early twenties, had fiery red hair and a beautiful build. She looked soft and shy. The third was most attention demanding personality. It was of a small kid, maybe 4 or 5 years old, who was a mix between her parents. She had messy shoulder-length blond hair and brightest blue eyes. She was built petite, dressed in yukata that was dark orange with fishes all over it. She had the biggest smile on her face, showing all her teeth (even the missing ones!), and was held tightly in her father's grip. The reason was apparent with all the bouncing and struggling she was doing to come to him.

He sat up on his knees and bowed, "You helped me when I needed it. Arigatō gozaimashita!"

The woman smiled and they all sat down in front of him.

"Do not worry, I know you are still wary of us, but we mean you no harm. I am Tiara and this is my husband Takamura Yoshitake. It was actually he who saw you lying unconscious with injuries and brought you here."

The young girl cut in immediately, "Yeah! You were all bloody and broken and your white hair was all dirty. But To-chan fixed you all up in no time. And then I washed your hair all white. I made it shining again, dattebayo!"

Jiraiya could not help but laugh at the girl, "And who are you chibi?"

She pouted and crossed her arms, "I am not chibi. I am the awesome Naruko Uzumaki, dattebayo!"

"Yeah, I can see that. You make a lot of noise. You are just like a wooden clapper."

She shook her head vigorously, "No no no, you got it all wrong; I am named after a volcano, dattebayo!"

The three adults laughed for a bit before coming back to serious discussion. Jiraiya had many questions.

"What were you doing out there near a fight. It was isolated enough."

"My Hara-chan told me I needed to go there, so I did." He said with a fond smile at his wife. "You see, my wife is a sensor, but more than that, she is a seer."

"And an Uzumaki?" Jiraiya more stated than asked.

Tiara nodded, "I am an Uzumaki. My mother was one of escapees from the Uzushiogakure massacre. She was sent because she was pregnant with me. In fact, she told me that all the younger generation and expecting mothers were the first to be sent off."

Takamura joined in, "Her mother settled here and soon had her baby. We grew up together, fell in love and married. I know that my family has no history like Uzumaki and I am proud to be married to one. We decided that our child would continue their legacy. And she does it already. She has the vast chakra pools and affinity with chakra that the Uzumakis are famous for."

"A little too much…" Tiara muttered to herself but did not elaborate. She looked at Jiraiya seriously, "I know you may call me selfish, but there is a reason I was determined to have you here before anyone else got to you. We need your help."

Jiraiya understood that already. An Uzumaki and a seer no less, would not divulge her identity for nothing. He nodded respectfully, "Anything within my capabilities."

She just smiled, "We are not asking for any secrets or anything impractical. We just want you to take our Naruko with you."

His brows furrowed, "For?"

"Forever." The father said calmly.

Confusion was etched in the sannin's face, "I do not understand."

Tiara smiled sadly, "Our time with our daughter has come to an end. I have had the feeling since many days that we will be attacked, and we will not make through it. I don't want that for my daughter. Her life ahead is not with us."

Jiraiya was shocked. His first instinct was to protect this family and village.

"I will stay and defend you then. I cannot let someone who cared for me to suffer; not when I know that I can stop it."

Takamura shook his head, "And do you know when we would be attacked? Are you sure that you are not needed back in Konoha? How long can you stay? You must understand that in the game of fate, every action has consequences. Just say that you stayed and helped us survive; could you live peacefully knowing that you could have saved the life of hundreds back in your village had you not stayed and carried on your duties? Life is never certain Toad Sage, and leaving in fear and doubt is no life in itself."

"She will be necessary there in Konoha, just believe me. Her presence is essential to a happy future. Just promise us that you will not let her fall prey to others' greed and machinations." Tiara added.

"What are you not telling me?"

"I am not telling you a lot of things, but whatever happens will lead to prosperity and not destruction. I cannot tell you more than that, for true emotions is necessary for things to happen correct."

Jiraiya could not believe in his ears. He looked at the young child in between her parents, who sat there subdued and resigned.

"And you chibi? Do you understand what is happening?"

Naruko nodded, "Ka-chan and To-chan told me that god has decided their time is up. They will have to go to him now. I cried you know, I cried a lot of days when they first told me. But then a few days back, Ka-chan had another vision, that someone will love me too; that many people will love me and I will not stay sad and be the happiness of others. That is my goal of life you know, to make my precious people happy, to protect them and love them. I will do just that. I will never forget my parents, but then again, they will always be with me, ne?"

"Of course darling." Tiara said as she and her husband hugged their daughter. Jiraiya could not prevent the few tears at the sight.

That night, after eating a hearty meal with her parents and packing up her belongings, Naruko stood beside Jiraiya facing her parents. Her mother kneeled down in front of her and handed her one scroll.

"You know the significance of this scroll, Naru chan. This contains all the knowledge of the Uzumakis, but only an Uzumaki can read it and only when they are in the right set of mind. Anger, jealousy, cruelty, greed and disgust have no place in this scroll. You will also be able to open them when you have right chakra as well as emotional balance. So stay strong, stay true and stay brave. Never do things that would play with your or your precious one's happiness, for that life will be full of regret. And follow your instinct and heart; they will never lead you into pain."

"I understand Ka-chan. I will always cherish you and never forget. You will be happy right? Here or with the god."

"Of course! And I promise we will always watch over you. We will always be in your heart and spirit."

With their final hugs and goodbyes, the sannin and the little girl walked away from the tearful yet smiling couple. They knew their girl would be safe, and that is all that mattered to them.

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 **Coming up:- Naruko meeting the third Hokage.**


	2. Chapter 2

**So here is the second chapter... tell me how it turned out...**

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"What happened after that?"

Naruko smiled at her companion, "Of course I pushed him into the puddle. He said bad words about my doll. You cannot say bad words, and surely not about my doll, kichi-kun."

The said kichi-kun croaked in laughter as Jiraiya shook his head. One moment is all it took for the chibi to make friends with Gamakichi. He had summoned Gamabunta to send message to his Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi about his companion. Gamakichi came with him sitting on his father's head this time just like that. Naruko took one look at the orange miniature and squealed. Without any fear or hesitation or warning, she immediately climbed up the father toad and started petting, cooing and practically coddling the young toad. And naturally, the attention got into the young toad's head and he decided to stay with the chibi to 'keep her company and away from the pervert sage and his erotic habits'. That immediately earned him the title of…

"ne ne, ero sannin!"

"Don't call me that!"

… 'ero sannin' which seemed to have stuck no matter what. Oh the indignity!

"But you are a sannin, yes?"

"Yes, but…"

"And kichi kun says you are proud of your ero-whatever, so you are an ero sannin, dattebayo!"

Jiraiya sighed again, "What were you saying chibi?"

This made Naruko giggle and Gamakichi followed it with a croak, "Ero – sannin, ninjas travel superfast ne?"

"Yes?" Jiraiya asked, not following her thoughts.

"And they still do not collide with anything or step in muddles…"

"Ah hun…"

"So all ninjas must be very very wary of things all around, ne?"

"Yes." Now Jiraiya was suspicious, especially when the chibi giggled at him.

"Then how did it happen, ero-sannin, that you did not notice when you slipped on the oil that Gama san spilled?"

Jiraiya spluttered as he faced her with his cheeks red, "It was after an intense battle, I'll have you know. I was tired and not that attentive."

"Oh" the girl said with wide eyes, "Are you very tired now too?"

"No, after the care at your house, I am at my peak now. I can face anything." The toad sage said proudly. This only made the chibi to look at him with wide eyes, which he could tell was totally a mocking and fake expression.

"You must be losing your touch, ero sannin, if you can be slipped into muddles so easily."

"What do you… umph!" Jiraiya fell into a puddle of mud directly in his path. A puddle he was certain wasn't there just a moment ago. He lifted his face from the mud only to see the chibi and the toad rolling on the floor laughing.

"haha…. Dirty dirty ero sannin."

"How….?" He wondered, and look at the laughing duo. Once finally recovered from their laughing fit, Naruko held Gamakichi high in her arms and jumped in joy, "You are awesome kichi-kun. Simply awesome. Can I keep him ero sannin?"

Jiraiya finally understood. Gamakichi had finally mastered his ability to control water and moisture around him. This was the first stage for all toads to master their abilities with water and later oil. He pointed a finger at the toad, "You… go back now. I never summoned you. You are spoiling the innocent girl's mind."

"No I will not!" Gamakichi croaked, "And this was her idea. I just helped her."

"Go home!"

"I won't."

"Go!"

"No!"

In frustration, Jiraiya summoned Gamabunta once again.

"Gamabunta! Look your son is playing pranks…"

One look at the toad sage and the father toad burst into laughter. He just shook his head and puffed back into his realm. This made the two friends laugh at him again. Jiraiya shook his head and stomped off ahead of them. But inwardly, he felt happy and that pleased him. With the war just about complete, he had seen many casualties and done so much fighting that he had not time to be relaxed for such a long time.

It took them four days to reach Konoha. As they drew nearer, Naruko grew more excited. The guard at the gates looked at his companion warily as they signed themselves in.

"Good to see you well, sannin sama. We were worried when your team arrived without you."

Jiraiya smiled at them and just led Naruko in. His destination was the Hokage tower to meet his sensei before he did anything. Naruko, on the other hand, wished she had few more eyes to look all around. She had never been in such a large village. There were houses and shops of all kinds and various sizes. The more astonishing part was that there were civilians as well shinobi all mingled together in the crowd. Almost everyone was greeting the ero sannin with respect. This made her realise that Jiraiya was a very high ranked person in the village.

They soon reached the tower and climbed up to the top. When they reached a large door, the lady sitting beside it on a desk rose and bowed to the sage.

"Welcome back Jiraiya sannin. It is good to see you back."

"Ah it is good to be back, Rikage san. I am sorry to trouble such a beautiful lady, but would you do me the favor of informing the Hokage of my arrival."

The receptionist giggled, "oh you flatter me, sannin sama. It is but my duty."

The man's hand rested on the woman's shoulder, "It is so good to see such hard working and dedicated person. My sensei is so lucky."

giggle "I am honored. You too are such a hard fighter, ne Jiraiya sama? I'm always impressed how you have naught a scratch on you but your enemies are always defeated."

Jiraiya sweat dropped a little thinking about his last fight, but covered it with a giggle of his own, "Ah they are always weaklings who face me. I always yearn for a good fight, but never get any."

Naruko meanwhile was getting tired of the nonsense talk that the two adults were doing, so she went ahead and entered the room. As she closed the doors behind her and turned around, her eyes met with wise eyes of a man sitting behind a desk. The said man, Hiruzen Sarutobi, the third Hokage, had looked up when he saw the door open and was watching the entry curiously.

They looked at each other for a minute, and then Naruko spoke, "My! You are older than the ero sannin, dattebayo!"

Her sudden proclamation made the Hokage laugh.

"Ha ha ha ha! Well that is the first time I've been called old. Who are you, little girl?"

"I am Naruko Uzumaki, dattebayo!"

Naruko skipped over to the chair in front of his desk and sat on it. But seeing as she was unable to look at the old man due to her height, she climbed over his desk and sat in a paper free area. In all this settlement, she missed the old man's eyes widening for a moment before relaxing with understanding. By the time she met his eyes again, he was just looking at her fondly.

"You have so much to study, dattebayo! Did you not study when you were small like me?"

The Hokage chuckled, "Oh studies never end, Naruko. They won't for you either."

"But so many papers!" she said in aghast.

"Well don't worry, these are not studies. You won't have to face then. They are my job."

"Oh you work here? Who are you, dattebayo?"

"I am Hiruzen Sarutobi. I am the Hokage of this village."

"Oh! So you are the number 1 rank and most powerful and most wise and most knowledge and most boring in this village?"

The third Hokage sweat dropped, "Well, not the boring part I think, but I am okay with the rest. Who told you this anyway? Jiraiya?"

"Well yes… but still you are old!"

"Ha ha… What can I say, it takes time to learn and grow in power."

"Oh… So what should I call you?"

"Whatever you wish, my child." Sarutobi said fondly.

"Anything?" the child asked in wonder.

"Anything." the adult nodded.

"Hmmm…." Naruko thought for a while seriously, making the Hokage charmed with her cuteness. Finally she snapped her fingers, "I know, I know, you called me 'my child' right? I heard some children call their grandpa 'jiji' and the grandpa chasing them. I always wanted to call someone that. So can I call you 'jiji', because you are old? Can I? Can I?"

Suddenly the door burst open and Jiraiya walked into the room, "Naruko Uzumaki, how can you leave my sight like that? What if you were lost or harmed?"

Naruko just pouted, "Nani, you were so busy talking nonsense with that lady. It was boring, dattebayo!."

The sannin spluttered in getting something to answer her. He finally puffed and ignored her, bowing to the Hokage instead, "Greetings sensei! This is the brat that I sent the message about."

"I gathered that." The Hokage nodded.

"So will you let me adopt her?"

"Why would you want that Jiraiya?"

The toad sage merely shrugged as he leaned against the desk, "Her parents entrusted her care with me. They helped me, so it requires that I do the same, however much ignorant, disrespecting, pranking, humiliating chibi she is."

Before Naruko could retort, the Hiruzen asked, "And what about your network? Are you going to give that up?"

"Nah, I will continue that. I just want her under my protection, so that others may not gain any advantage over her. She can live with the other Uzumaki if they get along, or I'll make some other arrangement."

"Other Uzumaki?" Naruko shouted from her perch on the table on her hands and knees. "Is there another Uzumaki living here? Why did you not tell me?"

"Yes there is chibi." Jiraiya scolded her, though it had no effect on the young girl whose face was split in a wide grin, "But she has to like you first and…"

"Of course she will like me!" Naruko stood on the table with her fist in the air and started jumping in her place."I am awesome Naruko Uzumaki. Any one will like me!"

… only for the Hokage's table to collapse, blowing up the papers on it all over the room. Needless to say, Jiraiya and Naruko did not waste a second escaping from the enraged and frustrated Hokage.

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 **Coming up:- Naruko meeting Kushina and Minato.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hi, my next update...**

* * *

Since Minato was busy with his team, Kushina decided to spend her day with Mikoto Uchiha and Biwako Sarutobi. Mikoto Uchiha was the wife of Fugaku Uchiha, the Uchiha clan head as well as the leader of Konoha Military Force. Biwako Sarutobi was the wife of the third Hokage. Despite them being high profiles in Konohagakure, she was pretty close friends with the two of them. She was especially fond of them as they stuck by her even after knowing her status as the jinchuriki of the 'kyuubi no kitsune' (nine-tailed fox). That was pretty privileged information very few people knew, since jinchuriki were usually disliked and feared in general. Another reason was to keep her as a trump card as well as not let the malicious higher officials to try and manipulate her to their needs.

Well anyway, she had a few close friends, and Mikoto and Biwako were two of them even if they were older than her. They were on a trip to her favorite Ichiraku ramen dining outlet that had opened up a few weeks ago. One bite and she was now an avid fan of young Teuchi's (the owner) cooking. She was narrating to them about her latest mission (the non confidential details) when they heard the exasperated cry of a familiar voice, one they knew belonged to a Toad Sage.

"How many times do I have to tell you, I won't let you sign the contract; not yet anyway. You are not ready yet."

"But when you leave off for your duties, you will leave me all alone." This was the voice of a small child, which piqued her curiosity. It was amusing; even she could tell the sniffling at the end of it was fake. Apparently the sannin had not realized that.

"Now now, pleased don't cry on me." Jiraiya said in panic. "Come on now, I told you that I would not leave you alone."

"But what if the Uzumaki lady won't like me?" the child wailed. Deciding why she had come up in an unknown conversation, she nodded at her companions and the three ladies turned around the corner. There was Jiraiya on his knees in front of a sniffing small girl, maybe four or five years old, consoling her. The girl's voice was on the verge of crying and tears were ready to leak at the brim of her eyes.

"Hey, you are Naruko Uzumaki, you declared yourself that everyone will like you!"

"Yeah" the girl nodded with her head down, "but what if she is a hag that scolds me for everything and beats me and starves me and…"

"Whoa! Stop! Halt! Why do you know the word hag?"

"I don't know what it means, just heard my Ka-chan say that to a mean woman." Then the girl gasped, "Oh no! What if she is a mean lady who take away all my chocolates, never let me have friends over, make me do all the work at home, and…" she put her hands on her chest with her face filled with horror, "What if she never lets me have ramen? Oh no, ero-sannin, you will not leave me alone with her, promise that!"

Kushina sweat dropped, while Jiraiya furrowed his brows as he folded his hands, "I am sure you are exaggerating, she…."

"And what if she is out on a mission and I am left alone in the house and some monster comes in and…"

"Stop Naruko! You will never be left alone."

"I will be allowed to make lots of friends?"

Jiraiya nodded, "You will be allowed to make lots of friends."

"I will be taught to protect myself?"

Another nod, "You will be taught to protect yourself."

"I will be allowed to have ramen?"

Jiraiya sighed as he nodded once again, "You will be allowed to have ramen."

"I will be allowed to go play around the town?"

A nod once again, "You will be allowed to play around in the town."

"I will be allowed to sign the toad contract?"

Another nod, "You will be allowed to sign the toad contract."

"Thank you ero-sannin!" The girl, Naruko, hugged the Sage, tumbling him to the ground along with her. The said sannin had just realized what he had promised.

"You cheeky brat! No you will not sign the contract till you are older and the toads accept you."

"Mou, you are mean. I want Kichi-kun."

Jiraiya pointed his finger at her, "The said Kichi-kun has to train at his home too and he lives there. He cannot be with you always…."

"Ano, that's why I need the contract, I will call him only when needed."

The sage continued ignoring her, "… and I will not even try to imagine the rain of pranks that Konoha would have to suffer with the two of you. So NO!"

Kushina sighed as they had reached them by now, "Sigh! A girl, after my own heart!"

She was stunned for a moment when the girl to look at her. She looked like a mini female version of her boyfriend, with her fair skin, blond hair and bright blue eyes. Naruko looked at the voice that just spoke, and found its owner to be a fair woman with fiery red hair, violet eyes, and a slender yet strong build. Violet eyes blinked, blue eyes blinked back. Kushina let a small smile spread over her face as she looked at the cute girl. That was all it took for the girl's face to transform into that of a wonder-stuck fan-girl with stars in her eyes.

"Kawaii! You are so beautiful!" For a moment, she returned to her normal happy mode and bowed to the two ladies on either side of her, "You two ladies are beautiful too!" and then instantly returned to her fan-girl mode again, this time with her clasped hands against her cheeks.

While Jiraiya sweat dropped at the sight, Kushina instead rushed forward and lifted the cute girl in her arms, twirling her around. Once she stopped, Naruko spoke.

"Konnichiwa! I am Naruko Uzumaki! You are an Uzumaki too right?" She did not wait for an answer, "Do you like me? Can I live with you? Are you single? Will you marry me?"

Kushina laughed at her barrage of questions, only to splutter at the end before she regrouped, "Ah! I am Kushina Uzumaki. I like you a lot. Of course you will live with me, we Uzumakis stick together. I am single." Then her face dropped, "I am sorry I cannot marry you. You see, I have my sights on a cute man."

"Does he like you too?"

"Yes, he does."

"Then why are you not married already?"

Kushina put her finger on her chin, "I wonder the same thing. Why hasn't he asked me yet?"

Naruko wailed her arms in the air in dismay, "You mean, you did not ask him either?"

Kushina panicked for a brief moment before she tried to calm the cute one, "I want to, but I also want to give him a chance first. You know, make himself feel special and all that…"

Naruko nodded solemnly, "Yes, I understand! Men are pompous, vain and self-centered."

The four women nodded at that while the lone man had a dark cloud over his head. Naruko continued, "So you cannot be my wife, will you be my sister?"

"Oh koneko! I will be your mother, sister, friend, prank partner, ramen partner…. Everything except wife."

Naruko eyes widened in joy and she hugged Kushina. Still in her arms, she turned to Jiraiya, "Can I keep her?"

The whole group laughed at the exchange while they all went to ramen stand. Kushina finally introduced Biwako and Mikoto, and they liked the child too.

================= Later that day ==================

Minato was very pleased with his team and the training they had done today. It made him proud to the see his team come from chibi genins to talented chunins. While Kakashi still retained his stiff and formal attitude, it was well balanced with joyful Obito and reasonable Rin. Now that Obito had finally awakened his sharingan, the team training took to a whole new level.

He was eager to see his love, Kushina, at home. She had been away on a mission for the last week and he was so ecstatic that she was back now. So of course, he never expected a missile to land into him the moment he stepped into his house.

"Otou-chan!" the missile shouted in joy, "I finally found you. I love you Otou-chan. How could you leave me alone all my life? I was so scared." The missile now stated sniffling.

Still in a daze, Minato gently held the child clinging to him under her arms and lifted her to his eye level. She was a cute girl, with eyes and hair similar to him. This shocked him, he never knew he had family elsewhere and what was all this about him being her father?

"Ummm…" he was still confused, "Who are you? What are you doing here?"

He panicked when her blue eyes widened and she started wailing on him, "Waaaah! Otou chan does not want me. Waaaah! Onee-chan! Otou-chan does not want me! Waaaah!"

"Oh really now?" asked a hard female voice. The little girl immediately wriggled free from him and ran to Kushina, who was standing at the doorway. She looked calm and stoic. Minato gulped.

"Kushina chan, I really don't know her."

"Oh! I always wondered why you talked so fondly of that woman you met in 'Yume no Kuni' (land of dreams)."

"What dreams? I never even heard of such land!" Now he was unnerved.

"Oh you know, you said the woman made you do something you never thought of doing." She said as she walked to him, putting the kid down.

"I really don't know what you are talking about."

Now her steps became a sultry saunter, "Hmmm… I do. You said that she made you…" She leaned in whisper something in his ear, transforming the gaze of Minato from confused to allured. Looking into each other's eyes, both of them forgot about the child in the room. So they had to be awakened from their trance by her.

"Are you going to have some Kaa-Tow time?" she asked with a tilt of her head.

Kushina and Minato blushed red as they faced her, "What do you mean?"

Naruko just shrugged, "I don't exactly know what they did, but Kaa-chan and Tou-chan said that they need some Kaa-Tou time everyday and I was free to do whatever in that time as long as I did not disturb them." She said with a nod.

Minato remembered his earlier encounter, "Umm Kushina? Was this all a prank?"

The two females giggled. Finally Minato Namikaze was introduced to Naruko Uzumaki.

* * *

 **Coming up:- Minato going into a battle.**


	4. Chapter 4

That night, Naruko had her first dinner with her new family. Yes, she missed her mother and father, but she accepted that this was for the best. Her parents would be in the stars and in her heart. But accepting something does not erase away the pain and heaviness associated with it. That night, as she lay in her new big bed and had her stuffed toad (a welcome present from ero-sannin) clutched to her heart, her heart hurt. The last few days she was in travelling and so fell asleep the moment she laid down. But today…. No, it was not easy to sleep. She could still remember the lullaby that her mother usually sang to her and her gentle caress that made her feel protected and loved and lulled her into sleep.

She tossed this way and that, but could not stop the tears that were flowing from her eyes. She tried her best not to make any sound and disturb her caretakers. She really liked them, but nothing replaces a mother's comfort.

So engrossed in her memories she was that she did not notice her door open. Only when a soft yet rough hand settled on her shaking shoulder, she abruptly turned around and tried to wipe her tears away at the same time. But Kushina stopped her.

"No Naruko, never stop or suppress your emotions, not with me. I am here for you. I know I am not your mother, nor will try to take her place, but let me share your pain. You are but five years old honey, I would be more surprised if you did not miss your loving parents." She smiled at the girl. She had just laid in her bed when she remembered back to how she felt when she got the news of Uzushiogakure being invaded and its falling latter. That had hurt her bad, so she wondered how the girl was coping with being in a new situation and decided to check on her. She was glad she did.

"I am sorry." Sniffled the child, but Kushina only pulled her into her arms. The dam of tears broke free.

"I am sorry… sniff… Kaa-chan said that… sniff… this would happen anyway… sniff… but I… she sung me to bed… sniff… now I cannot sleep… Tow chan would be fighting now… sniff… he would be hurt… sniff…"

Naruko babbled a lot amidst her tears, but slowly fell asleep in the arms of her new onee-chan. Kushina, on the other hand, could not sleep the whole night. She was bombarded with the memories of her past, of her parents, her family, her village and how she missed them all. When Minato came to their room to see, both the girls were sleeping peacefully, and had tear strains down both their cheeks. Deciding that they needed their rest, he left them there and went to the Hokage Tower for any new missions. The war was just about over, but they still had lot of cover ups to do.

He had just about left the house when an ANBU shunshined next to him, "Namikaze-san, The Hokage has requested your presence urgently."

Minato nodded and left with the ANBU immediately. When he arrived at the Hokage's office, there are already a few people there, including his students. He bowed to the Hokage.

"Hokage sama!"

"We don't have time, Minato. Come forward immediately." Sarutobi's voice was urgent and stressed. "Now, listen everyone, we have just received a message from Jiraiya that we are being attacked by Iwagakure across Kusagakure. There is also a skirmish reported on the borders of Sunagakure and Konohagakure. We also have to destroy the Kannabi bridge, since it seems to be a vital pathway to Iwagakure's line of supply as well as incoming bandits from other nations. Kakashi, you will lead your two team mates and destroy that bridge. Jounin Miyagi, you are to deal with the skirmish. Jounin Namikaze, you are to lead a platoon of our shinobi to Kusagakure and aid our forces there against Iwa's attack. Orochimaru is already there, so he will update you on the situation. Any questions? No? Okay then, collect the scrolls regarding your assignments. Make haste!"

Those in the room bowed and vanished immediately. Minato rushed home to collect his bag (his weaponry is always with him). Kushina and Naruko were sitting on the couch when he arrived. He went to the curious Kushina and pulled her into a hug. Then after a deep kiss to her, he explained his mission.

"I have to leave now. Iwa is attacking and we do not have sufficient force to counter them."

Kushina nodded in resignation. She understood, "Be careful and come back to me."

Minato nodded grimly and knelt in front of Naruko, "I am sorry we did not get enough time to be acquainted but we will have lots of fun once I return, okay?"

Naruko tilted her head to one side, "You are going to fight?"

Minato looked seriously at her, "I am."

She looked at him, intently, for a moment. Minato started to panic when he could see tears forming in her eyes. "You are strong, right?"

Minato could do nothing but shrug. Naruko sniffled, "Ummm… Please come back. Not only you, but all of you who are going to fight. There are people waiting here for you, Onee chan and me will wait for you. I don't have Kaa chan and Tou chan anymore, please…" She started sobbing.

Minato pulled the small being into his embrace, his heart heavy with her tears. Looking up, he saw Kushina with a tearful expression too. He kissed the girl on her forehead, "I'll try my best, Naruko."

"All the best Onii chan. I know you will rock there, dattebayo!" Naruko said amidst sobs.

Minato smiled at her words, but he had no time to talk. He immediately sealed his belongings in a scroll and left. He had already informed all his teammates to gather at the front gate. Once they were all there, he led them swiftly into the battle.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ In the battle _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Minato and his team of twenty shinobi ran as fast as they could to the battle. It took them half a day, but when they arrived there, the scene was horrible. There were too many Iwa, more than a thousand, ninja trying to get past the Konoha ninja that were in their way. The Konoha ninja were less in number, not more than a couple of hundreds. More so the case was that they were mostly returnees from other battles, who had stayed to rest before continuing to Konoha. So many of the fighters were tired. It was apparent in the way their moves were in lesser fluid and how they were more reckless.

Minato and his team wasted no time and jumped into the battle. Swipe, push, punch, knock, and stab were his moves in between his continuous stream of ninjutsu and genjutsu. The Iwa ninja seemed not to have expected such a fast backup from their village, for they seemed unprepared to deal with the strikes of his team. But that was not without their own losses. Minato was involved in the fight, but he could still hear the screams of his own comrades. As he cut through an opponent with his wind blade, he felt his academy collegue, Miranka san, collapse on him as she took a strike that was directed at him at his back. She died on the spot, just beside him. He bent low on instinct as another Iwa-nin sent a fire of stone bullets, and then shunshined behind his attacker to slit his throat. He felt something off and immediately put his hand in ram seal and said ' _Kai',_ only to bend twirl in his spot to evade a fatal attack as well as to cut through the neck of the attacking ninja.

The fight continued on for the whole night. Just as the sun was rising up the horizon, Minato suddenly felt a surge of power coming towards the battle field. He immediately relocated to a higher spot, decimating the Iwa ninja fighting there and concentrated on the direction of the power. It was coming from the west, where the Kannabi bridge was located. There were two sources of power, one nearer to the battle than the other. Minato understood the tactic Iwa was following here. They were sending their best fighters in two groups, maybe more, to assist in the invasion. Hoping that his students would be successful in their mission to destroy the bridge, he also realised that whatever the case may be, Konoha would not be able to fight the fresh forces without heavy losses themselves.

As much as he did not want to use his technique, he knew it was only way to end this battle. So he unsealed his set of almost hundred three-pronged kunai and waited. As the fresh batch of enemies neared, he formed the seals for _Jigoku Himei no Jutsu_ (Hell Shriek technique) and shouted at the mass of fighting ninjas ahead, making them all pause at the ear-blasting shout that they all heard.

"Konoha ninja, retreat this instant behind me. Iwa ninja, forfeit and bend down on your knees or you will lose your life. You will get no other warning!"

The Konoha ninja were wise, and they knew how powerful the jounin Namikaze was. They heeded his warning and started retreating immediately, just as the fresh Iwa ninjas joined the fight. The Iwa-nin all started laughing at the running Konoha-nin, teasing them and calling them names. As he stated, Minato gave no warning. He used his wind powering jutsu and threw his three-pronged kunai all over the battle field. Then he mentally focused on his _Hiraishin no Jutsu_ (Flying Thunder God Technique), the self-improved space-time jutsu created by Tonirama Senju, which allowed him to relocate to the locations marked by him or his special kunai instantaneously.

The Iwa-nin got no time to react as they saw the ridiculous blond haired ninja disappear from his spot and appear almost at every spot that his kunai hit. The few Iwa nin who were injured or had surrendered because they knew the reputation of the Namikaze of Konoha, saw him appear in a flashes of yellow all over the field and slit through the Iwa ninja standing next to him, only to catch one of the previously thrown kunai which is still in the air. The next instant, he threw that kunai elsewhere and disappeared again. It took all but a few seconds, a time it took them to blink amidst the horror, and all the standing Iwa nin, fresh and worn, collapsed on the field in a heap. There was no sound in the field for a moment. As everyone came out of their shock, they found the Namikaze kneeling on one knee in the centre of the dead Iwa-nin, with his one arm holding a kunai after a strike. He stood up, looked around and then vanished from his spot.

It took a while, but then the surviving Konoha nin let out a huge cry of victory as they realised that the battle was over and they had won. The 'Yellow Flash' had finished it for them. The sun shone brightly over them as they all helped their injured comrades, dealt with the fallen, captured the enemies and packed up in general. It was time to go home.

Minato's work was not complete. He could still feel more forces coming towards the bridge. Without delay, he transported to the mark he had placed on Kakashi. When he arrived there, the scene was sorrowful. There was a big pile of stones and Rin crying beside it, while Kakashi was fighting an Iwa nin. When he arrived, his student had just managed to strike his opponent down.

"We need to hurry." He said to them, "Where is Obito?"

Kakashi looked at him eye-to-eye and shook his head slowly. Minato was shocked to see tears flowing down his student's eyes, but more so to see one tomoe flashing through the left one. When he looked to see Rin, he noticed the half crushed form of Obito lying under the rubble with his left eye missing. Obito was lifelessly still.

He had no time for emotions right now. Steeling his heart, he turned to his students, "Come." He said. "We need to finish the task or there will be more Obito lying around soon. We will come back."

Kakashi and Rin nodded and sped after him. Minato could feel the enemy approaching, the time span they had reducing. As soon as they reached the bridge, Kakashi powered his Chidori and Minato his Rasengan. Together, they attacked the bridge in full force and could see the destruction ripple through it from their end to the other. When the dust due to the destruction settled down, they could see the long bridge completely destroyed. A team of few Iwa ninja were standing on the other end. They were successful just in time. Without any speech or gesture, the three Konoha ninja turned around and walked back.

When they reached the stone where Obito was, dismay and grief struck them as they found that the whole boulder had collapsed, burying Obito underneath. Minato, still not spoke a word, as he laid a hand on each of his students and teleported them to the gates of Konoha.

* * *

 **Coming up:- Naruko's glimpse at the Kyuubi.**


	5. Chapter 5

Kushina and Naruko both had not a wink of rest as they waited for Minato to come back. Naruko sensed the anxiety in her sister figure and could understand her pain. She did whatever she could to ease her; she made her tea, she dragged her out for a walk in the garden, she chattered on about some of the funny incidents in her life and so on. Kushina appreciated the child's ministrations; she just could not indulge her as much as she wanted to.

That night, Naruko crept in beside Kushina in her bed to sleep beside her again. Kushina did not complain, instead cradled the small girl close to her heart, which finally coaxed her into sleep. Naruko, on the other hand, had a brand new experience.

Since she was born, Naruko had been able to sense people around her, some more than the others. Her mother had the strongest 'presence' in her village and she could identify her from farther distance than others. The best she could explain was that she could feel the… power in a person? But more than that, she could feel how that power moved when her mother performed some tasks, and even vague impressions of any person's strongest emotions. That was one of the ways how she was always able to escape from some angry mothers when she had done something naughty. When she was old enough to ask and understand, her mother had explained that she had a gift of affinity with chakra all around her. Every being in the world had chakra, which was the combination of their physical and spiritual energies. It defined a person, and a few could manipulate it to perform tasks not normally possible. Her mother was surprised with her ability and stressed how unique it was. She warned her that people would kidnap and hurt her for her ability. So, Naruko had solemnly promised her mother that she would tell no one about it unless absolutely necessary.

She had felt strong chakra from the ero-sannin too, a lot stronger than her mother's. When she had arrived at Konohagakure, she had finally realised that having lot of chakra to manipulate was not uncommon. Every ninja in Konoha and a few civilians had that ability, though none had as much chakra as jiji or ero-sannin. When she had met Kushina, she too had a big pool of chakra. But what had caught Naruko's attention was the vast quantity locked in her. It was not her own and neither did she use it for any task, but it was present inside her.

That night Naruko decided to prod that chakra, for it was quite different to the ones she was used to sensing. Her own chakra pools have already started to develop, and she had no idea how to use and manipulate it. But her mother had taught her how to point her chakra out. So through her stubborn streak, she clenched her eyes as she forced her chakra to touch the foreign chakra in Kushina.

She did not know how much time has passed, and she had decided she would not open her eyes until she had prodded that chakra. But her curiosity won and she cheated. She opened one eye to see if any change had happened. Her eyes flew open wide in surprise when she noticed that she was no longer in the bed with Kushina Onee-chan. Instead she was in a grassland extending into beach, and there were many whirlpools visible in the ocean. The view was stunning.

She looked around for the foreign chakra, for all the scenario seemed to be made up of Kushina's chakra. It took her awhile, but she found that chakra suppressed under one of the whirlpools, the largest one. She wandered near the beach to get a clear view, but it was far away. She decided to walk a bit into the water to see if that chakra would come near. Surprise coloured her face when she found that she could walk on the water. She never could have guessed that.  
Elated, she skipped on the water until she reached that whirlpool. Getting on her knees at its border, she peered into the centre to see what was in there. Two big red angry eyes suddenly opened from under the water and she yelped, falling on her butt in surprise. Once the shock wore off, she looked into the whirlpool again. Those red eyes narrowed. She narrowed her eyes too, mockingly of course. She heard a low growl next. She tried to imitate it, but all that came out of her was a squeak. The voice in the whirlpool huffed and the red eyes rolled and then closed, hiding back in the whirlpool.

She started giggling when she recalled the scene. And that giggle turned into gales of laughter. So naturally, she was once more spooked when a hand gently shook her shoulder. There was Kushina standing beside her, with her hands on her hips.

"Care to explain, Naruko?" she asked the girl sternly.

Only, when Kushina looked behind Naruko she paled and caught Naruko's left hand. "Naruko! Please listen to me, get up gently and let's away from that whirlpool. Come now." "Why?" Naruko tilted her head to the side, "Is it because of the red eyes? Who is in there? Does he or she have the large foreign chakra pool?"

Kushina had a tense look on her face and suddenly, the two of them were back in their bed. Kushina immediately sat up and held Naruko's shoulder.

"How? How did you access my mindscape? How do you know about the foreign chakra? Who are you?"

"Ummm… Onee-chan, you are scaring me."

"I don't care!" Kushina tightened her grip, "Very few people in Konoha know about the kyuubi no Kitsune (the nine tailed fox). Are you a spy?"

"Onee chan, please, I am sorry. I am not a spy. I just sensed foreign chakra in you and decided to prod it a bit. This is the first time I entered into a… mindscape? Whatever that is!"

Kushina let go of her hold, but she did not relax, "How can you sense the foreign chakra?"

Naruko winced, still fearful of Kushina's wary expression. She decided to tell her the truth, "I don't know how actually! I have always been able to sense chakra in and around me. My Kaa-chan told me to never tell it to anyone unless necessary. She said it is a very rare gift and I should cherish it, but not abuse it; that people will kidnap and hurt me for this gift. I promise one-chan, I am not lying. Tell me what to do for you to believe me."

Kushina finally settled in the bed with her head in her hands, "I can't believe it. I will have to report this to the Hokage tomorrow. Wait! Does the Hokage know?"

Naruko shook his head timidly, "No, I told no one other than you. Please don't tell him."

Kushina started to grow suspicious again, but the child waved her hands wildly in the air to press her point, "Please don't tell anyone. It is my gift and I don't want anyone to know. Why should I let anyone know my abilities!?"

"Naruko, this village is headed by the Hokage. He has the right to know everything that goes on in this village."

Naruko crossed her arms, "Really!? Does he know what your mindscape looks like? Does he know about the … Kyuubi…?"

"Of course he knows that the Kyuubi is sealed inside me. He knows all the major activities that go around in Konoha. He knows the skill set of all the people under him. He precedes what information would be available to whom. And the knowledge of the one inside me, few have access to that."

Naruko raised her hands in disbelief, "Fine, tell him I know of your tenant. But nothing more, you hear. My ability is my own and only those whom I trust will know about it. I have met the Hokage all but once. I am not even a citizen of Konoha yet, let alone a shinobi under him." She crossed he arms.

Kushina shook her head, "Sleep Naruko. We will tell everything to the Hokage first thing in the morning." She gave a stern look at the child, cutting off any rebuke, "This is final. Now sleep."

Naruko eyes filled up with tears as she looked at the anger, distrust and panic in Kushina, "Ok." She bowed her head. "I understand."

Kushina could not sleep the remaining night. She kept staring at the kid beside her. Early in the next morning, Naruko left her to get ready. Kushina did the same as fast as she could. Just as she was about to go get Naruko, a toad appeared in front of her.

"Oi Uzumaki! Namikaze tells you that he is in Konoha hospital and doing well. He is not injured, his students are."

All thoughts fled her mind as Kushina immediately rushed to the hospital. As soon as she enquired regarding Minato, she was directed to a room where Kakashi was. Her heart relaxed finally as her love came into her sight.

"Minato!" She said quietly, which was enough for the said love to turn around, and they were immediately in each other's arms. Once they were reassured of each other's presence, they finally separated and Kushina walked to the bedded Kakashi. It took some coaxing but they spent the time there detailing and discussing what happened in the battle and how they won. Kushina was sad to hear the encounter.

Finally when it was lunch hour, Minato and Kushina decided to walk back to their apartment. As he hugged her with his arm around her shoulder, he asked Kushina, "What is Naruko doing? I presume you forbid her to come to the hospital?"

Kushina finally remembered and gasped, "Oh, how could I forget!? Minato-kun, we have to hurry and take her to the Hokage. She knows! She knows about…" She placed her hand on her stomach. Minato was surprised, and they quickened their pace. As soon as they got home, they called out for Naruko. Receiving no response, they searched for her throughout the house, but she was nowhere.

Panicked, they immediately rushed to the Hokage.

* * *

 **Coming up: Naruko with the Hokage**


End file.
